1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to improvements in water dispensing units, and particularly to advantageous aspects of a device and method for installing a water bottle into a dispensing unit with minimal spillage.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In today""s increasingly sophisticated office and home environments, people are no longer satisfied with drinking tap water. The main reasons for this are taste and health. Depending upon the locale, tap water may have an undesirable metallic or mineral taste. Further, again depending upon the locale, the tap water may contain pollutants, microorganisms, and other pathogenic agents that people wish to avoid.
Instead of drinking tap water, many consumers purchase spring water or purified water. As illustrated in FIG. 1, one common method of purchasing large quantities of water is in the form of a five-gallon bottle 1 that is placed into a dispensing unit 2 in an inverted configuration. A dispensing unit 2 typically provides refrigeration of the water and sometimes also provide heated water for hot beverages. Water 3 is gravity-fed from the bottle 1 into a well 4 inside the dispensing unit 2. As needed, water 3 is drawn from the well 4 through a spigot 5 located at the front of the dispenser 2, and additional water 3 is then drawn by gravity into the well 4 to replace the water 3 that has been removed.
One significant problem in this dispensing technique is the installation of the water bottle 1 into the dispensing unit 2. This tends to be a cumbersome process, particularly where the person installing the water bottle does not have sufficient height or upper body strength to properly control the bottle 1. A five-gallon bottle filled with water weighs over 40 pounds and can be quite unwieldy. Typically, the person installing the water bottle first removes the cap of the water bottle. The person then lifts the water bottle above the dispensing unit and attempts to invert the water bottle such that the opening of the water bottle is properly seated in the well of the dispensing unit. However, if the water bottle is not inverted and seated into the well with sufficient speed and accuracy, water tends to spill out of the bottle onto the dispensing unit, the floor, and any surrounding furniture, papers, persons, etc. In addition to wasting water and damaging nearby items, this also results in a loss of productivity, as valuable employee time must now be used to clean up the spillage.
There is thus a need for a device and method for installing a water bottle into a dispensing unit with minimal spillage.
These and other issues raised by the prior art are addressed by the present invention, one aspect of which provides a bottle cap, comprising a sleeve for receiving the neck of a bottle; a gate slidably mounted in a frame across the top of the sleeve, the gate being slidable between a closed position in which the gate is watertight and an open position in which an aperture in the frame is exposed to allow the flow of liquid therethrough; and a strap extending from the gate for moving the gate from its closed position to its open position.
Additional features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent by reference to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.